History Club President and Vice President. President (left) Matt Palmer, a junior geology major from north Little Rock and Vice President (right) Wyatt X Casey, a junior history and geography major from Hindsville
Photo Credit: Naomi Nichols
When many Americans think about the US government, the president, or the Constitution, the date that comes to mind as the beginning is July 4, 1776. However, it was not until 1787 that the US Constitution was signed and 1789 that it was put into effect. Prior to that year, the US was governed by the Articles of Confederation.
Under this form of government, each state functioned like an independent nation. The federal government was a single house congress which had very little power.
The Federalists were a group of people who wanted a change in the government and included people such as Alexander Hamilton, who died dueling Aaron Burr, James Madison, the Father of the Constitution, and John Jay the president of the Continental Congress. This group began meeting up to devise a new governing doctrine to create a better form of government in May 1787.
Debates between the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists began in September 1787, though tension had been brewing for months. The Anti-Federalists were an opposing group who believed that the Articles were satisfactory, and the nation’s government did not need to be changed. This group included Patrick Henry, famous for “Give me liberty or give me death!”, James Monroe, one of only two presidents to ever run unopposed, and Samuel Adams famous for “No taxation without representation!”.
However, on Sept. 17, 1787, the Constitution was signed by 39 of the 55 delegates at the Constitutional Convention before being sent out to states for ratification.
As a country, we celebrate Constitution and Citizenship Day on Sept. 17 every year. Americans use the day to reflect on the sacrifices made to bring the Constitution into effect, and to consider the freedoms we have because of it.
This year, Arkansas Tech University’s History Club organized a reading of the Constitution and a student signed, university edition of the Constitution. The club had speakers from all over the Russellville community and ATU’s campus read off sections from the Constitution.
Dr. Christopher Housenick started the reading with a brief overview of the day’s significance before the recitation began. Speakers included Pope County Judge Ben Cross, Mayor Fred Teague, City Council member Nathan George, State Representative Matt Duffield, former mayor Bill Eaton, Dr. Adolfo Santos, as well as many students from a variety of majors.
Dr. Housenick finished reading the Constitution from Amendment 8 to the end of the Bill of Rights, then concluded the presentation.
